Preliminary Record of Uranium Bearing Surficial Playa Deposits, Southeast Nusab El Balgum area, Southwestern Desert, Egypt

This significant is new record of uranium-surficial playa-lake type in silicrete, calcrete and ferricrete deposits of southeast Nusab El Balgum area. It offers a type model and exploration criterion for surficial uranium occurrences in other similar areas in the southern part of the Western Desert. The physiographic, climate conditions and geological setting of south Western Desert provide an excellent exploration target region for surficial uranium deposits. , Chemical assay of eleven surficial uranium deposit samples recorded in the calcretes have 190 to 130 total U in ppm averaging 160 ppm, in the ferricretes 142 to 106 ppm averaging 122 ppm and in the silicretes 100 to 74 ppm averaging 87 ppm, wherever the calcretes cover the largest surface area in the studied area. Camotite(K₂ (UO₂)2 (VO₄)₂,3H₂O] is the main secondary uranium mineral in such surficial deposits.